On Friday, Breitbart posted an article about an apology issued by MSNBC. Fake news can result in serious consequences, and the story originally put out by MSNBC was misleading and dangerous.
The article reports:
MSNBC issued an on-air correction on Morning Joe Friday after Middle East correspondent Matt Bradley falsely reported Palestinians had been killed in Gaza while waiting for aid from the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).
On Thursday, Bradley had been introducing a video package about “controversial aid sites” run by GHF in Gaza. It was the latest in a series of mainstream media efforts to discredit the organization, which is currently the main provider of food aid in Gaza, distributing 2 to 3 million meals a day.
The United Nations and Hamas both oppose GHF because it undermines their role and power in Gaza.
Bradley’s report repeated familiar, and false, accusations that GHF is dangerous for Palestinians, and went even further than others had gone, targeting GHF executive chairman Rev. Dr. Johnnie Moore because of his “evangelical Christian ideology” and his alleged “somewhat messianic perspective on Israel.”
In introducing the report, Bradley said: “We’re still seeing massive numbers of casualties every single day. And actually, a lot of those folks are killed, and have been killed, waiting in line for much-needed food being distributed by a U.S.-backed organization that has attracted a lot of criticism and a lot of scrutiny. This effort just had its bloodiest day two days ago, when around 60 people were shot dead while waiting in line.”
As Breitbart News has noted, such reports have been false: no deaths or injuries have ever taken place at GHF aid distribution sides. Hamas and others opposed to GHF have spread fake news in an effort to discredit the organization; mainstream media outlets have often repeated these claims, only to retract them later.
Misreporting like this only makes the situation in Gaza worse. Hamas and the United Nations have used the scarcity of food to control the population. The GHF food is a threat to that control.
Aeschylus is credited with saying, “In war, truth is the first casualty.” That is especially true in Middle East reporting.